


without thy help, by me be born alone

by stillskies



Category: Tokyo Babylon/X
Genre: Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-24
Updated: 2008-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-17 11:15:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/176280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stillskies/pseuds/stillskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lady Sumeragi has a Wish, and her grandson must pay the price.</p>
            </blockquote>





	without thy help, by me be born alone

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aishuu Yamada (Aishuu)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aishuu/gifts).



> Originally posted to Paradox Fantasy on 12/24/2008

He is first introduced to her when he is five. He does not comprehend the implications of their meeting, nor does she intend to explain. He is there for a purpose, and Lady Sumeragi stands tall behind him.

 _I shall grant your wish, Sumeragi-dono,_ she says, _but there is a price to be paid._

She nods grimly. _Whatever you require, Ichihara-dono._

 _Very well,_ Yuuko replies. She pulls a pair of unremarkable black gloves from a drawer. _They will only hide his presence so long as he wears them,_ she explains, handing them to Lady Sumeragi. _The price will be that all clan business that you require my assistance with be done through your grandson._ It is a simple price, and she knows Lady Sumeragi will understand the implications.

The older woman’s face tightens, but she agrees, and quickly ushers her grandson from the shop.

Yuuko watches them take their leave.

+++

He returns to her shop on the eve of his sixteenth birthday. She senses another presence outside of the kekkai; the presence of one who cannot enter.

 _I am Sumeragi Subaru,_ he says formally, bowing at the waist and practically folding himself in half. _I come on behalf of the Sumeragi family with a request._

She beckons him to sit in the chair across from her, and Maru brings an additional cup. Moro pours him tea. He looks at it uneasily, and Yuuko wonders what Lady Sumeragi has been telling her precious grandchild.

 _You understand that I will require payment for my services,_ she says, and it is not a question; his grandmother would never allow him to enter this domain unprepared.

Subaru nods.

_Very well, what is your Wish?_

The word seems to strike a chord within him. He sits up painfully straight and looks her in the eye. _We seek a way to determine the identity of the Sakurazukamori,_ he reveals.

Yuuko laughs. _I cannot grant that,_ she tells him. _The price would not be one that your grandmother would agree to._ She leans over and gently touches the gloves. There is an additional web of magick woven over the fabric, but the initial spell is wearing thin.

It won’t be much longer until it completely comes undone.

Subaru is looking at her, confusion clouding his eyes. _I was told to grant you any price you deem worthy,_ he says, though there is a seed of uncertainty coloring his voice.

 _To grant that Wish,_ she explains, _would be to make null the spell I granted for her a decade ago._

He still does not look as though he understands, but he stands and thanks her, regardless.

She walks him to the door and looks out. There is a child waiting impatiently at the gate. _She will worry if you stay much longer,_ she tells him, eyes on the girl. _For she cannot enter._

Subaru nods and leaves quickly. She can hear the girl’s voice clearly as she berates him for leaving her sight.

+++

On the eve of his seventeenth birthday, he arrives in the midst of a rainstorm. He is soaked when he enters the parlor, Watanuki trailing after him with towels, mopping up the puddles Subaru is trailing behind him.

 _Leave us, Watanuki,_ she tells him, and, before he can protest that he had just cleaned the parlor, Maru and Moro appear and drag him from the room. _You have a Wish,_ she says, turning her attention to the rainsoaked child before her.

His eyes are empty, lifeless. She stands and comes to him, taking his hands in hers. The concealment spell has been destroyed, and the web of incantations Lady Sumeragi wove have been ripped apart. The red string on his left hand has been severed, and the one on his right hand is frayed.

She has the urge to wrap her arms around him, but she stands and distances herself. She clenches her right hand, feeling the mystical string around her own pinky brush her wrist. _You have a Wish,_ she says again, and he looks up. _You have a Wish I cannot grant._ He hangs his head and clenches his hands. _The dead cannot rise, Subaru-san,_ she continues softly. _And I cannot turn the pages of time to open your eyes sooner._

 _The bet,_ he says brokenly. _It’s not over. I have to find him._

Yuuko looks at him somberly. _I can grant you that Wish, but there will be a price,_ she tells him.

 _Anything,_ he says, nodding. _I have to find Seishirou-san._

She turns away, averting her gaze. _And what will you do once you find him?_

_I’ll kill him._

The lie in his words wraps itself around him – a thin black chain tying his arms to his sides. _The price is never returning to the Sumeragi estate,_ she intones.

She sees him falter at her words, but he agrees.

 _Very well,_ she says. _Take your gloves off, and never put them back on so long as the Sakurazukamori lives. The pentagram engraved on the back of your hands will flare whenever he is near; there is no magick that can cover it in this plane._

Subaru quickly takes off the gloves and shoves them in his pockets before staring at the back of his hands. There is a faint blue glow leaking from the mark. _He’s near,_ he says quietly.

Yuuko nods. _Do not throw your life away chasing shadows, Subaru-san,_ she warns. _You still have a duty to your name; you do not bear his. She sacrificed her life for you, and you have that debt to repay. You must live for her._

He nods distractedly and stands. _Thank you,_ he says quietly before hurrying out of the shop.

She watches him go, knowing that there are two futures that are possible, and fearing the one he will choose.

**Author's Note:**

> Title shamelessy borrowed from Sonnet 36 by William Shakespeare


End file.
